A team from the West African regional bloc ECOWAS left Niger without meeting the leader of the junta that seized power in a coup last Sunday, a delegation member said Friday, Report informs via France 24.
The Economic Community of West African States delegation arrived in the Niger capital Niamey on Thursday "but did not spend the night" as scheduled, nor met with coup leader General Abdourahamane Tiani or deposed President Mohamed Bazoum, the team member said.
Defence chiefs from West African regional bloc ECOWAS were set to wrap up discussions about possible intervention in Niger on Friday, as a team of mediators from the economic grouping push coup leaders in Niamey to restore constitutional order before an approaching deadline.
This Sunday will mark the one-week deadline given by ECOWAS following the coup, with the regional bloc threatening to use force if Niger's democratically elected president is not reinstated.